Royal Outfits of the Day: Letizia Also Brought the Jewels

While we were busy in tiaraland, Queen Letizia threw out a notable jewel appearance of her own.

King Felipe and Queen Letizia welcomed the President of Germany to Spain last week.

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This strand of large pearls with a big diamond clasp is another piece from the joyas de pasar; the Russian set of pearls was given by Alfonso XII to his bride, Maria de las Mercedes of Orléans, as a wedding present in 1878. Queen Letizia paired the historic pearls with an outfit from Hugo Boss. (Boss, in addition to being one of Letizia's regulars, is a German company, so a bit of a nod to the guests.)

House of HM the King

Huzzah for Letizia with the big time jewels and all. It's just that I don't really think this works for her. Nothing against a strand of pearls, but this ensemble is a stuffy combination. Doesn't feel very...Letizia.

The King and Queen also attended the Francisco Cerecedo Journalism Awards.

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We need to close out with something back on the sleeker side, like so. This is night and day in every way from the German event above. Note the white heel on the shoes to coordinate with the black and white Carolina Herrera dress, a great styling choice.

Royal Outfits of the Day: The Spanish Royal Family in Asturias

Last week the Spanish royal family visited Asturias to mark the 13th centenary of the Kingdom of Asturias, the centenary of the Catholic Coronation of the Virgin of Covadonga, and the centenary of the creation of the National Park of Covadonga Mountain. Phew! That's a lot of centenaries all at once.

House of HM the King

It was an historic day for one more reason, too: this marked the first official trip to Asturias for the Princess of Asturias, a big step in Leonor's official life. She was supported by her parents, King Felipe and Queen Letizia, and her sister, Infanta Sofia. Leonor's blue outfit went with her dad's tie; Sofia's pink with red accents went with her mom's red dress. Family coordination: check.

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And it's all very appropriate and very good, precisely as we have come to expect from them! Letizia's red dress is custom Carolina Herrera. She can never go too wrong in her best color.

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Leonor's light blue dress was a great background for some of the official gifts she received on her big trip. Leonor and Sofia received necklaces with medallions of the Virgin of Covadonga, which they both put on (Leonor's wearing hers above). Both girls received chain necklaces from Asturias with Asturian gold and sapphires (see here). As Princess of Asturias, Leonor received a beautiful bejeweled handmade badge, which you can read about and see here. She wore that during the day as well.

House of HM the King

They rounded things out with some hiking for that aforementioned national park centenary. If this picture's not a tourism advertisement for that park, I don't know what is. What a view! And what a well played day for the whole family.

Royal Fashion Awards: Royal Ascot 2018, Day 3

Update! You can find all the Ascot goodies for the rest of the days at the Jewel Vault:
Day 4 // Day 5

Yesterday was Ladies’ Day, or Gold Cup Day, the halfway point in this annual festival of hats and usually home to some of the best millinery we see throughout Ascot. Did the royal ladies rise to the occasion? Judgment awaits, and you can check out the Queen in pink here.

Best in Ascot Rituals

Countess of Wessex

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Sophie did her duty and fulfilled another crucial Royal Ascot requirement yesterday: the ritual Muppet sacrifice. Minus the very visible base in the close ups, though, this Jane Taylor hat is one former Muppet I can get behind. Love that she leaned into lavender for the accents with this Suzannah dress.

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Yes, you see, Sophie comes to entertain, if not by with her hat then with her animated race watching. (It seems she didn’t back the winner in the Gold Cup race, based on her facial expressions.) She’s here to entertain and to make you jealous of her big aquamarine ring. Mission accomplished on both fronts. (Aquamarines had a moment on Day 3; the Princess Royal was also in the game.)

Best in Winning Streaks

Princess Beatrice

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The hits just keep rolling in for Beatrice. This striking black and white Jonathan Simkhai dress is great on its own and even better paired with this Sally-Ann Provan hat. She wears this saucer shape so well.

Sally-Ann Provan Greta hat

Most in Need of Day 2 Advice

Princess Eugenie

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Eugenie…could have kept that streak going for herself if she’d consulted the Day 2 outfit of Autumn Phillips for a little advice first. The boater hat from Sally-Ann Provan definitely lives up to the Ladies’ Day expectations in true planetary ring fashion, for sure, but the Erdem dress needs something simpler to work. It’s a competition and nobody wins.

Erdem Bernette dress, Sally-Ann Provan Naeva hat

Most Unexpected Color Combo

The Duchess of Gloucester

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Green hat, loads of emeralds, and a burnt orange dress. Green and orange has to be one of my least favorite color combos. Except that…a) it’s Birgitte! That’s the last person I’d guess would come out with this combination so yay for surprises, and b) that’s a great shirtwaist dress (she knows it, too; she wore one in blue on Day 2), and c) EMERALDS. Big emerald drop earrings and pearl necklaces with emerald beads, part of a wedding present to Princess Alice from Queen Mary. Yum.

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I'm not hitting absolutely everyone here, but BONUS ROYAL ALERT: Hi Serena! The Duke and Duchess shared a carriage with the Earl and Countess of Snowdon. There is, as always, much potential in what we can see of Serena’s outfit.

Who's taking home your prize ribbons for Day 3?

Royal State Visit of the Day: More from the Dutch in Luxembourg

Summer is almost here. Do you have your luxurious caftans ready for all the cocktail parties you shall be hosting on your yacht?

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima hosted a concert in Luxembourg, Máxima wearing a repeated Valentino caftan gown
RVD/Barney's

Queen Máxima's caftans come in the form of gowns and they are always ready, darling, whether for cocktails on a yacht or hosting a return event on the second day of the Luxembourg state visit.

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Grand Duchess Maria Teresa's looking ready for a little holiday glam too, with all the tropical foliage happening on her bespoke Elie Saab dress (per Heaven).

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And just a little tip for you from these ladies: Use those flowing garments as a showcase for your strongest necklace game. Queen Máxima wore the Ruby Peacock Necklace previously on this red gown; last night, she followed up on her Stuart Surprise with her Tutti Frutti-style necklace and bracelet. I wouldn't have thought that set would work so well with red, and yet it does. Just one reason that set belongs to her and not me, I guess. One of about 66,419 rea$on$.

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Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie may not have sported a caftan - her flowy dress is another Elie Saab nabbed from her mother-in-law's wardrobe - but she too came to play in the necklace department. One of the diamond rivière necklaces from the Luxembourg collection! Making up for the giant diamonds missing from the Lux side of the state banquet, are we? (Luxarazzi posted a video of these arrivals, worth a view if you're interested in Stéphanie's updo. Some impressive hair architecture going on there.)

Shall we hit the day events from days 1 and 2, briefly?

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For day 2, the Grand Duchess looked super cute - a great jacket in bold jewel tone, neatly paired with cropped trousers and a statement necklace. That is all I have to say about the day outfits on day 2. Moving on...

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Moving back, actually, to the arrivals and another can't-miss-it outfit from Queen Máx. If she'd leaned more into the green side of this and less into the yellow, she would have come pretty close to one of my all-time favorite QEII ensembles. But she didn't.

Speaking of hats, if you've ever wondered how royal women manage to greet each other when they're all hatted up, well:

Sometimes it doesn't work out so well. The Hereditary Grand Duchess won the prize for best welcome outfit anyway.

Psst: Check in over the weekend, fingers crossed we'll have some fun stuff to look at from Crown Prince Frederik's birthday!

Royal Outfits of the Day: Easter in Spain

The Spanish royal family does Easter in Palma de Mallorca, a more casual and less hat-filled affair than the British royal family does, because they just don't roll that way and variety is the spice of life and whatever.

Queen Letizia, Infanta Sofia, King Felipe, the Princess of Asturias, King Juan Carlos, and Queen Sofia
House of HM the King

A touch of nautical fun for Queen Letizia, a Hugo Boss/Carolina Herrera combo kept light and bright by the polka dots on the top.

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And you can never really go wrong with a yacht-ready ensemble here, so I'll give it a thumbs up.

House of HM the King

Queen Sofia's traditional necklace of Easter egg pendants had some competition for most festive accessory this year thanks to the tie flair of the two kings: floral (or something) for Felipe and pink for Juan Carlos. Although Sofia's necklace still clearly wins as it does most years, because obviously.

This whole occasion has been somewhat overshadowed in the past day by a short video clip that seems to catch a strained family moment as they left the cathedral, when Queen Sofia's attempt to pose with her granddaughters was obstructed by Queen Letizia. (You can see it here.) (And Princess Marie-Chantal, wife of Sofia's nephew Crown Prince Pavlos, decided to weigh in on Twitter against Letizia, raising some eyebrows.) So now the topic of conversation has turned to the supposedly strained relationships in the family. Which...ugh. The whole thing is so messy. If you ask me, this little video means a whole lot of nothing. People are using their interpretations to confirm whatever they already thought, as people are prone to do. *shrug*

Anyway, that's the elephant in the room. Back to the clothes? Back to the clothes.

Royal Outfits of the Day: Accessories for Meghan and Máxima

A good statement accessory can make or break an outfit. Two case studies: 

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle visited Belfast last week.

Kensington Palace

Meghan's pick of a delicious cinnamon velvet heel for this outfit totally makes the whole thing; it's unexpected without being random. Royal watchers who happen to also be Shoe People (that would be ME) rejoice! In fact, the shoes are really the only thing on this outfit that grabs me. Although I do understand that the Purse People are doing some rejoicing of their own, and I am happy for y'all.

Queen Máxima had an audience with the Chairwoman of the National Assembly of Vietnam last week.

A post shared by Queen Maxima (@queen.maxima) on Mar 26, 2018 at 11:49am PDT

On the other hand, Máxima has taken a perfectly preppy dress and added this collar/necklace/thingy on top and it is possibly ALIVE, so there's that. (It isn't part of the dress; she's worn both separately in the past.)

Royal Visit of the Day: Máxima and Rania Collide in the Netherlands

A state visit from Jordan to the Netherlands was scheduled for 2017, then it was cancelled/postponed, and then it was rescheduled for this week - but downgraded to an official visit. Still, at long last, the fashion forces of Queen Máxima and Queen Rania have collided as promised!

Instagram/queenrania

The official welcome ended up being a pretty tidy summation of both ladies' styles: one with all the cape and hat action you can stand, the other sleek and simple with a twist (that twist, in this instance, being a button configuration that leaves me permanently searching for the fictional missing pair). Obviously I love the cape on Máxima's Claes Iversen coat, although I can't help but feel like the whole thing smothers her in tan. Rania's fresh light blue is a welcome relief for the first day of Spring.

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At the official dinner: Prince Constantijn, Princess Margriet, Queen Rania, King Abdullah, King Willem-Alexander, Queen Máxima, Princess Beatrix

We have another textbook definition of her personal style from Queen Máxima in the evening, because oh YES, this is a ruffled formal banana frock and I kinda love it and that's Máx Magic for you.

Instagram/queenrania

Rania, on the other hand, is pretty tame compared to her usual and actually went with a traditional choice. She thanked the women of the Basmet Al-Khair Charitable Society for her traditional Jordanian dress on her Instagram. I love the sleeve details.

The switch to an official visit meant a formal, white tie state banquet was replaced with an official dinner. So no tiaras this time around. But Máxima wouldn't let a visit from fellow monarchs go entirely un-bedazzled, now would she?

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Of course she wouldn't. She adorned her Claes Iversen dress with the Stuart (House Diamond) Necklace with the pendants removed. It's the second time she's worn it; it's been shortened by a few links or worn back a bit so that it matches up with the neckline of the dress and as a result, these two things work together against all odds. Bless her, trying to soothe our tiara loss by wearing a serious royal necklace with her ruffled formal banana frock.

Royal Jewels of the Day: Kate's Emerald Display

The Duchess of Cambridge decided to show off a little more from her jewel vault last night.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attended the BAFTA Awards.

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Emerald and diamond earrings with a matching necklace and bracelet! This is not an entirely new jewel debut. Recall, if you will, her visit to New York in 2014:

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At the St. Andrews 600th Anniversary Dinner

The earrings she wore to the BAFTAs appear to be the bottom portion of the earrings she wore in 2014. She also wore the bracelet back in 2014. The provenance of this set is not officially known, but a gift from a Middle Eastern royal - based on the style and size of the jewels - is my strongest guess. A wedding present, maybe, since that would have been her biggest opportunity to pick up a Middle East gift thus far in her royal life.

If I just leave it at the emeralds and don't talk about the dress color, can we call that good?

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Thing is, I found the notion that there should be any "controversy" should she choose to wear black in support of Time's Up in the first place to be a fairly infuriating thing. And I find myself unwilling to devote any more words to it than that. (But I'll end this back on a purely superficial note to say that, while the shape of this Jenny Packham dress is stunning, I'm not a fan of the dullness of this color with the vibrant emeralds. Funnily enough, they'd have looked amazing with black.)

Year in Review: The Duchess of Cambridge and Queen Máxima's Bests of 2017

I'm picking my best 2017 outfits from our most frequently featured royal ladies in a series of posts this week and next. I'll also have a post of favorites from other royal women. Make sure you hop down to the comments as we go along to share your own personal favorites - I'm paying attention, and maybe we'll do a thing...

These two ladies have two bests with one thing in common: NECKLACES, baby. The bigger the diamonds, the better.

The Duchess of Cambridge at the Diplomatic Reception

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I wouldn't normally consider something like this for my yearly best list. We can't even see the dress properly! (Though the lovely Heaven did receive confirmation that, as many suspected, it was a bespoke Jenny Packham gown.) But here's the thing: the best bit about Kate's sartorial output in 2017 was, for me, the new things she got to borrow from the Queen's jewel vault. And none gave me the jumpy claps more than her use of a basic diamond collet necklace - the height of opulence, while not overwhelming the design of any outfit. So I'll just stick my blue ribbon right on that car window and that'll be that.

Runners up:

• An Armani Collezioni suit made for one of her sleekest and most professional appearances of the year.
• Another blue sparkly Jenny Packham at the Royal Variety Performance was my favorite of her evening dresses this year - of those we could legit see, that is.

Queen Máxima at the State Banquet for the President and First Lady of Argentina

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Now this dress, on the other hand, is likely to make my best list every single time it appears. And Máxima topping her repeated Jan Taminiau princess dress with the ULTIMATE necklace from the family collection vaults it right into the top spot. Wearing the Stuart or House Diamond Necklace feels like one step towards a possible reappearance of that Stuart Tiara, though it's staggering all on its own. (Her jewel digging also unearthed the necklace of the Ruby Peacock Parure this year, for bonus points.)

Runners up:

• Her bold Taminiau caped dress on the second night of the state visit to Portugal actually beats out her tiara appearance on the first night for me, in hindsight.
• Wouldn't be a Máxima list without some serious sleeve-age, right? So obviously her turn at that popular Roksanda Ilincic dress nabs another spot.
• And...a jumpsuit?! Can it be? Honestly, black and white from Roland Mouret might have been her sleekest appearance of the year.

What were your favorite Catherine and Máxima outfits in 2017?

Royal Dress of the Day: Máxima Brings the Drama (Again) in Portugal

Hit the rewind button, we gotta wrap up King W-A and Queen Máx's Portuguese adventures. One of their remaining adventures, at least. Because while there were some outfits that were just...*stares directly at camera* *shrugs*...her evening follow up to the state banquet's emerald festival was filled with even more drama.

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima hosted a concert on the second day of their state visit to Portugal last week.

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Half cape, half caftan, all drama! This Jan Taminiau gown comes with an all-you-can-handle serving of rubies and diamonds, and its own creatively placed censor bar, free with purchase. Husbands that understand the art of escorting a dramatic gown are sold separately.

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About those jewels, though, seriously. Many people would have seen the bold, clean lines of the dress and gone for a minimalist, modern jewel approach. Many people are not our Máxima. She's experimenting again, using a piece of the stomacher from the Mellerio Ruby set as a pendant on her diamond rivière. She previously used it as a brooch pendant; this is even better. What combo will she dream up next??

Royal Outfits of the Day: A Swedish Catch Up

We have some recent stuff from the Swedish royal ladies, but first, one that I meant to post about some time ago, and then my attention got predictably dragged elsewhere...

The Swedish royal family attended their annual Sweden Dinner in September.
Kungahuset.se

I think evidence of a bright purple choir robe in action should be documented here, don't you? Queen Silvia's dress is a repeat from Yuki (designer Gnyuki Torimaru). He's known for cutting in a circle and creating sculptural designs with draping from there, which can either end up as a wonder of construction or as...well, as a bright purple choir robe. Or both. Take your pick.

Under fredagens middag på Stockholms slott bar drottning Silvia en lila långklänning som hon bar upp med bravur. Vem blir inte glad av en sådan här färgklick mitt i höstmörkret? Foto: Stella Pictures/David Sica Silvia wears a purple maxidress, the colour makes you happy, right? It really catches the eye.

A post shared by Expressen Kungligt (@expressenkungligt) on Sep 23, 2017 at 4:41am PDT

This appearance also needs to be documented here because Queen Silvia wore a new (I believe) pearl necklace with an amethyst centerpiece, and anything involving new amethysts needs its day in the sun. I don't really know what's going on with the shape of that centerpiece, okay, but there it is.

And now to the week at hand:

Crown Princess Victoria attended the opening of the Swedish Church meetings at Uppsala Cathedral on Tuesday.

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This feels like a refreshing color change, no? Very professional. And even a hat (mmm...hat-ish object) to finish out our hat-tastic week. (No fan am I of these not-hat hats, but in this case, it fits the occasion just right.)

Queen Silvia and Princess Madeleine were in New York for the World Childhood Foundation, including a gala on Monday.

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Is that a ruffle on the edge of Princess Madeleine's sleeves, or is she being followed around by a vaguely sinister aura? Better award some pre-Halloween bonus points, just in case.

Crown Princess Victoria in Rodebjer, Queen Silvia in Alexis, Princess Madeleine in Self-Portrait (per UFO No More)

Royal Event of the Day: Dutch Royals at Prinsjesdag 2017

Programming Note: The blog returns on Monday. 

It's time for Prinsjesdag! The Dutch monarch addresses the government every September, reading a speech from the throne detailing plans for the coming session. Queen Máxima, Prince Constantijn, and Princess Laurentien all accompany King Willem-Alexander for the event. It's a special occasion with a special dress code - a throwback of sorts, with long dresses, orders, and hats, which was a much more common formal day dress code for royal events years ago - and that usually adds up to Máxima maxing out with a specially coordinated outfit. It's often one of her sartorial highlights of the year. And this year {drumroll please}...

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...{sad clatter of drumsticks dropped half-heartedly on the floor} This year was, you know, fine. Listen, it's perfectly nice! A workhorse solution to this dress code, basically.

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It's also just a longer, slate blue/gray version of a Natan dress that Queen Máxima and her Natan twin, Queen Mathilde, already own in pink. Which is a bit of an anticlimactic choice for a special event, you know what I mean? Disappointed by my own overly high expectations, AGAIN. I think there are better ways to do subdued, if that's what she was after (and, as always, there are many reasons she may have been after that).

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The use of aquamarine gems from Queen Juliana threw a bit of color interest into the ensemble. And adding a diamond necklace from the royal vaults is a little bit more jewel power than Máxima usually gives us for this occasion; it is during the day, after all, hence why there are no tiaras.

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Maybe she was hedging her bets a bit with bonus diamonds, just in case her dress didn't bowl us over. That's a solution I can get behind.

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Even Princess Laurentien feels a little subdued this year, no? Her dress is from Hardies, jacquard with a mermaid scale feel. The two Dutch ladies make a bit of a twin act, in these two belted dresses with their brimless hats.

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But of course, Laurentien's hat is a tilted not-hat hat, because there has to be a little Laurentien touch in there somewhere, right?

Royal Dresses of the Day: Máxima and Mary Go Formal

The royals are returning from their summer breaks and they are bringing their evening gowns with them and I am READY.

Queen Máxima attended a benefit dinner for the Princess Máxima Center for children's oncology this week.

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I don't really know about this gown - which, if it had a different neckline, I could easily believe was stolen from Crown Princess Mette-Marit's closet - but finding something to perfectly match this necklace and earring set is impressive. Máxima's worn this unusual set of what looks to be sapphires, diamonds, and moonstones for a few years; its provenance is unknown.

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Did she go searching for just the right dress for the set, or was it a happy coincidence? Or does she have enough in her jewel vault to match any dress? A true chicken or egg question.

Luisa Beccaria Organza Printed Wide Sleeve Silk Dress (h/t to Heaven)

Crown Princess Mary and Crown Prince Frederik attended a dinner celebrating 10 years of the Mary Foundation this week.

A post shared by DET DANSKE KONGEHUS (@detdanskekongehus) on Sep 7, 2017 at 10:55am PDT

Please tell me I'm not the only one getting serious Sabrina vibes here. I mean, BE STILL MY HEART. Only a few pictures from this event were released, so it's hard to get a sense of the bottom of the dress and I am now extremely invested in seeing it again with a nice full length shot. ASAP! (Pretty please?)

Lasse Spangenberg confirmed to me that Crown Princess Mary wore one of his gowns (custom made) last night pic.twitter.com/a6DUQjgj0f

— HeavenLM (@HeavenQRF) September 7, 2017

Tiara Watch: The Spanish State Visit Strikes Again

More tiaras were promised; more tiaras were delivered.

House of HM the King

The second day of a British state visit usually involves a gala banquet for the visiting head of state hosted by the Lord Mayor of the City of London at the Guildhall. This is not the flood of royal tiaras that last night's state banquet was; unlike the state banquet, this is not an event hosted by the royal family. The Queen does, however, send a royal rep to the event.

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So the Princess Royal came armed with her most dashing escort (Tim Laurence, of course!), her deepest curtseys, her daintiest diamonds, and the most fairy tale dress in her wardrobe. Doesn't this seem like an uncommonly frilly gown for her? It's just that I always think of her as a no-nonsense type of dresser. It's probably forty years old, knowing Anne. And it.still.works.

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The embellished gown really does work well with one of her favorite assembled parures, pieces that weren't made together but they work as a set anyway: her Festoon Tiara, her diamond demi-parure (earrings and necklace) from her parents, and her diamond bow brooch from her brother (all covered here). The diamond brooch took the place of her Royal Family Order for the night; you can see the holes on her sash where the RFO usually goes. She also wore the sash and star of the Order of the Garter, plus the star of her new Spanish order, the Order of Isabella the Catholic.

House of HM the King

(Sidebar on Spanish orders awarded by King Felipe during this visit, for my fellow sash nerds: Here's confirmation that Andrew, Anne, and Harry were all given a grade of the Order of Isabella the Catholic; since they weren't wearing the sashes and only wore the stars, I assume it wasn't the top grade. Only those three because they were the ones that accompanied the royal couple on events outside of the palace. Charles, Philip, and Elizabeth also have Spanish orders, but they were given by Juan Carlos. End sash nerd sidebar.)

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Queen Letizia stepped back to her current favorite tiara, the Spanish Floral Tiara. The real story is THOSE EARRINGS. Sapphires and diamonds, and - based on the style - almost certainly a Middle Eastern gift, I'd guess Saudi. They are HEFTY. They are also an entirely wrong match for the natural style of the Floral Tiara, and would have been better off with a different diadem.

House of HM the King

This navy one shoulder gown is, as far as I'm concerned, mainly another device to enable the wearing of the double bracelets of the joyas de pasar on one wrist. See, you have to double up on the bling. Because of balance. A brilliant scheme. Anyway, it's not as in-your-face fabulous as last night's was, but why compete with something that can't be beat? Of course she took a step back tonight. It's still a lovely appearance.

House of HM the King

Also, hey, another tiara! The Lady Mayoress always wears one, and a couple other ladies did as well, which you can see in the group shot above. I have no information to provide here, I am just passing along the bling. As is my duty. *salutes*

Update: The couple's farewell from Buckingham Palace has been covered at the Vault!

 

Royal Jewels of the Day: Queen Máxima's Tutti Frutti Set

Just about ten years ago, Queen Máxima (then Princess Máxima) debuted one of the most interesting sets of jewelry in her collection.

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Princess Máxima debuts her Tutti Frutti set, 2007 

This demi-parure of a necklace and bracelet was sold at an auction at Christie's Amsterdam in March 2007. The bracelet was described as "a diamond set branch with carved ruby, emerald and sapphire buds and flowers" and sold for $34,791 (€26,400); the necklace is "composed of a graduated line of carved emerald, ruby and sapphire flowers and leaves suspended from a meandering diamond set seam to the carved flower and diamond clasp" and sold for $31,628 (€24,000). Acquired either for or by Queen Máxima (many have guessed a gift from her husband), both pieces appeared on her just a few weeks later. She first wore them with a hot pink dress for the celebrations of King Willem-Alexander's 40th birthday in April 2007.

 Queen Máxima's Tutti Frutti Necklace
Christie's

The pieces are in the Art Deco style popularized by Jacques Cartier in the 1920s and later named 'Tutti Frutti', which was inspired by India and utilized a signature combination of emeralds, rubies, and sapphires - often carved, or using a mix of cabochon and faceted stones - in natural designs. Máxima's demi-parure would be Tutti Frutti style as opposed to the original stuff made by Cartier; while the prices paid for this set are admittedly high, actual Cartier Tutti Frutti creations from its prime period can fetch record prices at auction.

 Queen Máxima's Tutti Frutti Bracelet
Christie's

Royal jewels in the Tutti Frutti style are a pretty rare sight these days. Queen Sofia has a set and Queen Elizabeth II has a brooch, both almost never worn. Queen Victoria Eugenia owned a Cartier Tutti Frutti bracelet made with diamonds, black enamel, and conch pearl, a rare color combination that made this bracelet one of the most important jewels created by Cartier in the inter-war years. It was sold in 2012 for over $3.4 million. We have previously featured the Mountbatten Tutti Frutti Bandeau, a Cartier piece in the signature three gemstone colors, now shown at the V&A Museum.

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Queen Máxima wears both necklace and bracelet, 2016

Of course it's the exuberant Queen Máxima that makes the most of this exuberant jewelry style; the lady certainly does know her way around a statement piece of jewelry. She wears the bracelet most, even sneaking it into the occasional day outfit, and uses the necklace less frequently. Perhaps it's because I'm prone to love a statement jewel in the first place, but I adore seeing these in action.  (And I can't help but hope that she might have something else for us as we approach King Willem-Alexander's 50th birthday next week...ah, wishful thinking.)

Tiara Thursday: The Habsburg Sapphire Parure (With Bonus Auction Treasures)

There are several interesting pieces with royal and noble heritage coming up for sale this month. A couple of the most impressive:

The Habsburg Sapphire Parure Tiara
Christie's

Christie’s is offering an in impressive set of sapphire and diamond jewelry with a somewhat confusing heritage (and I can only simplify here). The parure was sold in 1961 at Christie’s with notes stating that it came from Empress Marie Louise (1791-1847), the second wife of Napoleon I, and that it had been lastly worn by the Duchess of Habsburg-Lothringen. Marie Louise was a Habsburg, the daughter of Empress Francis II of Austria, and some of her jewels were left to her Habsburg relatives when she died. Today, however, these jewels are dated from after her death, but may have been created using stones that belonged to her.

Two brooches and a bracelet
Christie's

Parts of the parure are being sold in November: a 19th century tiara consisting of a sapphire and old-cut diamond scrollwork band with a detachable top of old-cut diamonds and pear-shaped sapphires, a bracelet with sapphires separated by diamond fleur de lys motifs, and two sapphire and diamond fleur de lys brooches. The same set was sold as separate lots in 2012 at Sotheby’s, when an ornate sapphire and diamond necklace and another fleur de lys brooch were also included. The fleur de lys motifs probably indicate a tie to the Bourbon dynasty.

The other brooch and necklace, auctioned in 2012
Sotheby's

When sold in 2012, these pieces were noted as the property of a German nobleman and the provenance listed an owner as German banker August von Finck (1898-1980) and thence by descent. In the current sale, they are listed as the property of a private collector. The tiara is estimated to sell for $30,449 to $50,748. (For more on the complex history of these pieces, see the tiara, the bracelet, and the brooches at Christie’s; the brooches at Sotheby’s from 2012. Royal Magazin offers a photo of the tiara in use.)


Also at auction this month, Sotheby’s offers some magnificent jewels with imperial Russian heritage.

Diamond Necklace
Sotheby's

Combined as one necklace today, this bow brooch and necklace band were originally two separate pieces. The bow probably dates from the 1760s; the band may date from around 1780 and has been altered over time. Both pieces were in Russia’s imperial collection until they were sold by the revolutionaries in 1925. They were then handled by dealers until purchased in 1960 for a private collection. The necklace was last sold in 2005. Its estimated price at this auction is $3,041,538 to $5,072,668. (See it at Sotheby’s here.)

Diamond Parure
Sotheby's

This set includes earrings, a necklace, and a brooch with cushion-shaped diamonds tinted in various colors. It dates from the late 19th century. The stones used here are alleged to have belonged to Empress Catherine I of Russia, wife of Peter the Great, and to have been part of the jewels given to Sultan Ahmed III of the Ottoman Empire to encourage the peace treaty ending the Russo-Ottoman War of 1710–11. The stones were later made into this necklace which was given to the wife of the Khedive Teufik of Egypt. Now listed as being sold from a European private collection, the pieces are noted as having been formerly in the collection of Her Imperial Highness Neslishah Abdel-Moneim. The set’s estimate is $3,041,538 to $5,072,668. (See it at Sotheby’s here.)

Video: More on these Russian jewels and their history

Royal State Visit of the Day: November 2

Psst: Looking for the British state visit from Colombia, complete with tiaras? It's up at the Jewel Vault.

Another day, another jewel unearthed from the depths of the Dutch jewel vault by Queen Máxima (several of you have emailed me about this piece, and I thank you for that). Queen Juliana had a necklace of turquoise, gold, diamonds, and pearls with a heart-shaped pendant that can double as a brooch. She loaned it to Princess Christina for her engagement announcement in 1975, and it seems to have disappeared since then. UNTIL NOW.

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima landed in Perth this week to kick off state visits to Australia and New Zealand.

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I can see why it disappeared; it's a statement piece, and longer necklaces aren't quite as easy to wear. (I personally ADORE it, because I have developed a love for turquoise and for pieces with big impact, and would toss it on with jeans in a heartbeat.) But Máxima's managed it here, and it actually elevates this Mattijs van Bergen dress. This is some high level magpie skill. Respect.

After donning a big hat and a repeated dress for a day at the races, she went fairly neon for the next day.

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You're going to have a tough time selling me on bright coral orange in the first place, let alone on a day when red remembrance poppies are involved. So that's a no from me.

Royal Jewel of the Day: Queen Josephine's Diamond Stomacher

The Swedish royal jewel collection is home to some of the oldest royal jewelry still in use, and with their creativity, not even pieces that went out of fashion long ago need waste away in the vault. For example:

Queen Josephine's Diamond Stomacher
Frankie Fouganthin/CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)

Josephine of Leuchtenberg (1807-1876) came to Sweden thanks to her marriage to the future King Oscar I, and several pieces in the Swedish royal jewel collection came to Sweden thanks to Queen Josephine. She had a diamond stomacher, also called a devant de corsage, in a design of rosettes and a bow hung with multiple pendants; in the picture below, she wears it with pearls as pendants. (She's also wearing the pearl version of the Leuchtenberg Sapphire Parure Tiara.)

Queen Josephine and the stomacher with pearls

Diamond pendants were primarily used in the stomacher, three inside and one larger pendant at the bottom. Subsequent queens consort Victoria of Baden (1862-1930) and Louise Mountbatten (1889-1965) were also pictured wearing the stomacher.

Queen Victoria

Stomachers pretty much went out of fashion as time went on, but with a little jewel creativity and a slight reconfigure, this one's been kept in good use for many further decades.

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Princess Lilian wears Queen Josephine's Diamond Stomacher Necklace

With the addition of a diamond rivière, the large diamond devant de corsage became an even larger diamond necklace, and the necklace became a favorite of Princess Lilian (1915-2013). Lilian was the wife of King Carl Gustaf's uncle, Prince Bertil, and a much-loved member of the Swedish royal family. She showcased the necklace often and well.

Crown Princess Victoria in the necklace
Anna-Lena Ahlström, Kungahuset.se

Crown Princess Victoria wears Queen Josephine's Diamond Stomacher Necklace now. It's an unusual shape, one that seems to require special accommodation with gown necklines, which may be the reason she has only worn it a couple of times. She did show it off to perfection with an open neckline when she debuted it at Princess Madeleine's wedding in 2013 (below - you know I'll take any excuse to show that magnificent appearance again).

Victoria with the necklace and earrings
Frankie Fouganthin/CC BY-SA 3.0 

You may have noticed that the two smallest diamond pendants went missing when the stomacher became a necklace (you can see two empty hooks where they once hung in the close up at the top). Those were turned into a pair of diamond earrings, which Victoria is also wearing above. The earrings are favorites of Victoria's; Princess Sofia notably wore them on her wedding day.

Princess Sofia and the earrings
SVT

From one jewel into two stunning pieces? That's the jewel creativity of the Swedish royal family at its best, I say.